Memoirs of the Celebrated Mrs Woffington: Merry Christmas

Wednesday, 24 December 2008

Merry Christmas

Thank you for your kind support over the last month as this blog took its first tentative steps - it means a lot to me. I wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy new year!

Lichfield Cathedral, Staffordshire. Copper engraved print published in The Beauties of England and Wales, 1801.
Source: Ancestry Images.

Lichfield Cathedral, Staffordshire, photographed by me yesterday.

Subscribe now!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...: Then - elegant gentleman travellers. Now - dodgy Ford Capri. The Cathedral still looks nice though, and interesting to see the spire of St Mary's in the background of the modern picture. Thst was such an elegant church in the C18th; such a shame the Victorians gothicked it!

Merry Christmas, one and all!; 24 December 2008 at 16:32
Mrs Woffington said...: I thank you so much MV Overchurch - Merry Christmas to you!; 24 December 2008 at 17:37

Post a Comment

Who was Mrs Woffington?

Virtually forgotten today, Margaret Woffington (also known as Peg or Peggy) would rise from humble origins to become one of Georgian London’s most famous actresses, sharing the stage with the likes of David Garrick and excelling in so-called ‘breeches roles’. Born around the year 1720 in Dublin, her childhood years were marred by the death of her father, which plunged her family into poverty. Having reputedly sold watercress barefoot in the streets of the Irish capital, she was soon talent-spotted by a tumbler known as Violante, who staged populist entertainments in booths around the city. Violante had a troupe of child actors called the Liliputians, and before long Woffington was making her debut as Polly Peachum in their version of The Beggar’s Opera. Moving to London, she gained plaudits for both her outstanding beauty and her talent – particularly in comedy – appearing at both Covent Garden and Drury Lane. Known for her quick wit and no-nonsense attitude, she had high-profile affairs with Garrick, Lord Darnley and Charles Hanbury Williams; she was also a generous benefactor, supporting her elderly mother and may even have endowed some almshouses in Teddington, where she had settled at the height of her success. She died, unmarried, in 1760, having suffered a long wasting illness, and is buried in Teddington's parish church of St Mary’s.

Disclaimer